Lady Britannia
by FireChild24
Summary: Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos.
1. Chapter 1:To Die Standing

_Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos,and peeks the interest of two friends?_

 _Rated M for eventual mutual threesome involvement. Don't like, don't read it. Only positive and constructive criticism will be acknowledged. Also looking for Beta Readers._

 _I wish I did own the rights of Captain America (drools), but I don't sadly. However, I do own Annette._

 _On with the story._

 **Chapter One: To Die Standing**

The rain was never ending, it wouldn't have been so bad had it not been for the wind that came with the storm Annette found herself running in. The ground had become water logged making her escape harder, but she had to keep going, they were right behind her. The dogs were getting louder for every time she slipped in the mud, or stumbled over the roots of the forest she found herself in. This escape had been made with five others, now it was just her. The rest were vaporised with those god-like weapons as they ran into the trees.

' _Don't stop! Don't look back!'_ She looked back at that last one and cursed quietly as she saw the flashes of light from the search party. _'By the gods! Why can't I run faster? What am I going to do?'_

"AAHH!" She fell hard when the laces of the shoes she stole snagged and caught on a low tree root. In her panic, she tossed the shoes and continued barefoot. This cost her precious seconds.

"HALT!" Screamed a man closing behind her. She never heard the shot as she darted through the trees, only the searing hot pain in her shoulder where the bullet had buried itself. That didn't stop her resolve to keep running. ' _I'm going to keeping running or die trying, I will NOT go back to that hell!_ '

"NEIN! Du Narr! Dr. Zola braucht sie am Leben!" Bellowed the lead soldier.

Annette nearly tripped at that. What could they possibly want her for? All they did was beat her senseless and inject her with stuff that really made her wish that they had hit her harder, just so that she wouldn't have to deal with the feeling of being on fire and dying from the inside. Whatever they wanted, she wouldn't allow them to capture her again. She would rather be dead. Taking one last look over her shoulder, she almost missed the sharp drop and skidded to a sudden stop. Now all that stood in her way to freedom was a 100 ft drop into water rapids below her.

' _What do I do?' It's over_!' The poor girl stood hopelessly, staring into the waters as if in a trance. Battered, bruised, soaked to the bone and shivering from the cold wind and exhaustion, she debated whether or not to return to the woods further upstream. The snapping of fallen branches and twigs brought her out of her thoughts. The search party had found and surrounded her. The leader approached her calmly.

"You've done well to get as far as you have frauline. Alas, it will do you no good now. Herr. Zola would be most upset if you were to not return, if you come without resistance I'm sure I can arrange for you punishment to be how you say, less severe?"

Chortles and sniggers could be heard now the storm had passed. Annette knew she wouldn't be coming out this alive if she went back to their camp. Unconsciously, she edged herself further away from the soldier until she felt the heel of her foot dip at the edge.

"Hydra is the superior power dear child." The commander spoke with reverence. "We shall be the true leaders of this world, with you as our most treasured jewel in Herr. Schmidt's crown. You will be powerful and rich beyond your wildest fantasies. What have you to say to that?"

"What I have to say to that?" Annette looked down into the chasm where the rapids swirled restlessly, taking a deep breath, she turned to face the leader of the group. With strength she didn't know she still had left, she looked him in the eye with no fear left. "I say I would rather die on my feet a free Englishman, than live on my knees under Hydra's rule!"

Surrendering herself to her fate, she plummeted over the gorge and was swept off by the strong current, hearing the distant sounds of gunfire as the enemy tried to dispose her. As she dived to avoid detection, a stab of pain shot through her leg. Forgetting that she was under water, the wounded woman gasped in pain and began to panic as she took in water.

She had been in the water for what seemed like an eternity, her body constantly being thrown around the rapids and sucked into their depths. The more she struggled to reach the surface, the more it seemed that the river wanted to keep her there. Twisting and turning in the violent currents she finally managed to break to the surface, taking in much needed air.

CRACK!

Her head throbbed. Had she been shot again? She couldn't know for sure, all she knew was that she was hurting and if she didn't find a way out of the water she would drown. Further down river she saw a low hanging tree branch, and just as she was passing made a grab for it and held on for dear life.

SNAP!

The branch came away from it's trunk, plunging Annette back into the cold wild waters. Yet the branch continued to stay afloat despite her weight. Feeling the effects of her wounds and exertions, her vision became to swim. She didn't want to fight it anymore, at least now she could die on her terms. Closing her eyes, she waited for the inevitable, hearing voices on the wind. Welcoming death, she let go of her raft and sank into the murky depths. Just before her senses failed her. She felt the splash of something big hit the water, the feel of two entities snaking around her underarms and being pulled back to the surface.

Then all faded into black.

 _Translation_ : NEIN! Du Narr! Dr. Zola braucht sie am Leben! = NO! You fool! Dr. Zola needs her alive!


	2. Chapter 2 Up A Creek

_Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos,and peeks the interest of two friends?_

 **Chapter 2: Up a Creek**

 **Steve's POV**

"Well gentlemen! After a job well done, I think we'll stop here for tonight before making our way back to base camp." Steve Rodgers announced to his loyal team. They'd just successfully raided another Hydra facility. Despite the poor weather early that day it had made for great cover with the explosions being masked by the sounds of thunder. The enemy never saw, or heard the attack coming. The tall blonde would have rather they carried on through the night, but every body deserves a little down time between missions. Even Captain America.

"You good sir are becoming one of my best friends." Falsworth remarked looking up at his commanding officer with a smirk as he sat in the grass near the river bend. The others hooted with laughter as they threw themselves into the water to cool off and unwind whilst Bucky, Steve's long time best friend outfitted himself with a fishing rod out of his boot laces and a branch. Steve couldn't repress the laughter growing in his chest as looked over at his pal's antics.

"You know that never worked when we were kids right Buck?" Bucky looked at his friend with a dead panned look as he rose to his feet.

"Shut up Punk! If I get any fish it'll beat eating those K-rations any day." Smirking, Bucky turned to walk further up the river makeshift fishing rod in tow. Chuckling at the dark haired man's stubbornness, the captain jogged to keep up.

"Why so far down river Jerk?"

"Cause those idiots are stirring up the water, quieter down here." Came the reply.

Sitting at the waters edge, the two soldiers took it in turns holding the rod as they talked about home and their plans once they arrived back in London. Steve leaned back on his elbows and closed his eyes as he basked in the warm glow of the sun. ' _With how beautiful it is here and how quiet, You'd never know that there was a war still going on._ '

"-is that?!"

Interrupted from his musings Steve looked over at his friend who was staring curiously down the river. "Sorry Buck, what did you say?"

"I said what the hell is that?!" Bucky pointed to a large floating object making it's way towards them. The captain stared hard at the large tree branch, covered in pondweed looked like it had been battered by the currents and the storm. "Must've been blown off by the storm earlier." Steve guessed shrugging, yet they both still eyed it closely. That is of course, until an eddy turned the branch round and revealed a lifeless body hanging from it by one arm.

"SWEET JESUS!" Bucky cried as they both shot off the ground and ran alongside side it shouting to get the person's attention. As they got to the banks of the river they're faces froze with horror as the body came loose from the floating raft and sank in the water. Without hesitation the two friends dived into the water and powered through the current to reach the unknown person. Each grabbing an underarm, they dragged themselves back up to the surface and back onto dry land. They began to remove the weeds and hair out of the way when they both gasped in both surprise and shock.

"Oh my god! It's a woman!" Steve gawked.

"Is she okay? Is she breathing?" Bucky looked on panicked. Fearing the worse, they checked the unconscious woman's airways and listened for a heart beat. She was alive, and now that she was out of the water, began to bleed heavily from almost every where it seemed.

"We gotta get her out of here!" Steve barked, picking the woman up and running back to the rest of his team.

"Morita! Get on the radio right now! We need immediate medical evac at our co-ordinates. Jones! Denier! Prep the med kit, this woman needs emergency medical attention. Dugan! Falsworth! Perimeter patrol with Barnes. I'll join you once we've stabilised this civilian's condition."

Everyone jumped to their positions, following his orders to the letter. Once Steve had placed the woman down for Jacques and Gabe to perform first aid, he rushed to find anything dry from the rain to light a fire to get her warm. He kept casting glances at her as his team treated her wounds and wrapped gauze and bandages around her head, forearms and legs when he heard Denier cursed loudly.

"Merde! Capitaine, cette femme a des blessures par balles!" Steve spun at the Frenchman's statement, shocked at the news.

"Where and how many?" The blonde demanded. Jones looked over to his friend and commander with a stony expression. It clearly didn't look good for the petite female under their care.

"Two sir. One exit wound to the shoulder and one lodged in her thigh. I can't remove the bullet, there's no telling how close it is to the artery. She's gonna need a doctor Steve! All we can do is stop the bleeding and keep her warm before Hypothermia sets in." Denier threw his blanket across the ground close to the fire that Steve had got going and between the three of them, carried her and placed her carefully onto the covered ground and proceeded to cover her in another blanket from Dum-Dum's knapsack as it was the closest to them. With one last check of their handy work, they rose from the ground and collected their rifles to join the patrol patting the captain on the shoulder as they passed.

Steve closed his eyes taking a deep breath as he did so. ' _Good God! What if we hadn't have stopped and kept going?_ ' He brooded feeling sick to his stomach. ' _She really would have died_.' Brushing his bangs out of his face, he turned to go talk with Jim Morita who was manning the radio trying to get through to base camp. "Where are we at Jim? Any word?"

The Japanese-American looked up at Steve frustrated and nodded. "It's looking like we're up a creek without a paddle Sir." Jim muttered as he powered down the radio, removing his headset. "The good news is that Phillips sent out convoy to pick us up, the bad news is that they can only be with us by as early as tomorrow morning."

"Dammit!" Steve cursed under his breath as he ran his hands over his face and looked over to the prone figure lying by the fire with concern etched into his face. "Let's pray she makes it through the night."

Jim looked over to their impromptu ward showing equal concern nodding sombrely. "Amen to that!" Another thought occurred to the radio man as he looked up toward the heavens. "There'll be no rain tonight thankfully, but the temperature is gonna drop tenfold by nightfall, and we can't keep the fire going through the night in case we give away our position to hostiles. They say that body heat is the best for surviving that kinda cold ya know?" They continued to watch over her whilst waiting for the others to return from their patrol.

Despite all the bruising and scrapes littering her face, Steve could tell that she was a pretty little soul. Though he couldn't understand where she had come from, or even how she came to be in the river in the first place and how long she was in there for. _'What the hell happened to you doll?'_ His were broken by the sound of the rest of the Howling Commandos returning down river. Judging from each of their expressions, they found nothing but looked on at the woman in concerned awe. The American captain rushed to meet them hoping that they would have some answers to this mystery.

Translations: "Merde! Capitaine, cette femme a des blessures par balles!" = "Shit! Captain, this woman has gun shot wounds!"


	3. Chapter 3 She Did What Now?

_Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos,and peeks the interest of two friends?_

 **Chapter 3: She Did What Now?**

 **Bucky's POV**

He didn't need telling twice as Steve Rogers went into Captain America mode giving out orders as they ran with their precious cargo in his friend's arms. Even though he had just pulled a half dead and bleeding woman out of the river and sprinted back to camp soaked wet through, all he kept thinking was that this woman (and now possibly them as well now), might still be in danger. Stopping only to take some breaths and collect his arsenal, he took a brief glance at the injured party as his friend gently laid her on the ground as Jacques and Gabe prepared to give her medical care, then left with Dum-Dum and Falsworth to lead them to where he and the captain had first discovered the young woman.

"How the hell did a dame end up here of all places?" Tim Dugan muttered as they got to the section of river that Bucky and Steve found her. "What's further up river?"

Monty looked at his map of their initial area, brows furrowed as he concentrated. Then his eyes bulged and gasped. "You've got to be joking? That Hydra facility we sacked earlier is further up ahead!"

Dum-Dum looked over the Brit's shoulder to look at the map in disbelief. "You're shitting' me right?" Bucky took the map to double check that Falsworth was right, then looked back at the two soldiers.

"He's not wrong Dugan. It's about another forty minutes down that way one that side of the river." Bucky was sure of it, but that didn't make sense. 'Intel _clearly said that it was just a factory. What else could have been going on that we didn't know about?_ ' He was sniping up high during the raid, they rescued as many of the workers as they could, but he never saw any head for the forest during the raid. He _did_ however; see a small group of about ten Hydra men emerge from them with dogs, he thought it had been odd at first but now he had a sudden clarity as to what their purpose had been now. They were a search party...and they had returned empty handed. Looking at the high ridge from where the woodland ended and the rapids in front of them began, he came to a heart stopping conclusion.

 _'She jumped!'_

"WHAT? I'm sorry Barnes, she did what now?" Gabe Jones chocked out whilst Jacques Denier looked slightly nauseated at the thought of a jump from that height. Not realising that Bucky had voiced his suspicion out loud, or that there were two new additions to the patrol, he faced his friends and explained about what he had seen during the Hydra raid earlier that day. Falsworth rubbing his moustache as he thought about everything that had been relayed to him.

"It does seem to make sense rather a lot doesn't it chaps?"

"Not to mention it would explain all of her injuries to her head, arms and legs that we patched up just now." Jones contributed then pointing just further across from themselves. "See that rock that just peaks out of the water? I'd bet my Lucky Strikes that that's how she got that gash on the back of her head. It may even explain the gunshot wounds too."

"WHAT?!" Bucky paled at this new piece of information. Shot? Something was very wrong with this scenario, and he intended to find out everything. Shouldering his rifle, he looked up at the sun and then back to where they knew the factory to be. "How long before sunset?"

Dugan checked his watch. "We've got about an hour boss." When they all looked to Bucky, they could see that he was torn from whether to continue back to the factory for further investigation, or start making their way back the camp. They knew how frustrated he was, they were too, but right now they had to think about the team's safety especially with them exposed in the open with no cover. Taking a moment to refocus himself, Bucky was ready to give instruction.

"We'll mark the location of where we stopped looking, if we can we'll pick this up tomorrow when the cavalry arrives. We cant ignore the fact that where she jumped from here is about three miles from the Hydra base." Murmurs of agreement and heads bobbing to his course of action, their eyes travelled down the violent route in which the river carried the poor woman they found themselves to be caring for down. "It's time to head back, there's nothing more we can do right now."

They began the trek back to where they set up camp for the night, thinking amongst themselves whilst still being on alert for the enemy. So far they hadn't come across anything out of the ordinary, but better safe than sorry. Bucky's mind was on the girl he and Steve pulled from the river, the image of her standing at the edge of that plateau and having to jump to evade Hydra had him both applauding her for her courage and worrying about why it took a team of ten armed soldiers to try apprehend her, the fact that she had been shot at too concerned him to no end. As if just remembering, he slowed to keep pace with Jones and Denier.

"You said she'd been shot right?" Gabe sighed as he rolled his stiff shoulders before talking loud enough for everyone to hear him. He really didn't feel like repeating all of this considering he'd already through all this with Captain. Rogers and Morita back at camp.

"Yeah, twice. She had to have been shot from behind cause of where they are. The back of her shoulder exiting to her front and in the back of her thigh area. Her injuries fit the suspicions that she had escaped from the facility just before we hit it. The shoulder wound wasn't lethal, it was meant to slow her down." The men were furious listening to the list of injuries that the African-American was revealing. Bucky wanted to be sick.

"The cuts to her feet from running through the woods. The cuts and bruises all over her from being thrown around in the rapids and that gash to the back of her skull. When you two found her and pulled her out, she was the very early stages of Hypothermia. Cap got a fire going before we set out to join you on patrol." After Jones' report, nobody felt much like talking, only wanting to get back as quickly as possible and that the girl was strong enough to make it until they could get some real help from the doctors and surgeons on base.

Dugan, knowing that everyone was in a funk, felt the need to lighten the mood for everybody's sake. "Well, I've not seen or spoken to the gal yet...but I like her already. That kid's got balls!"

Bucky couldn't help the smirk appearing on his face as he thought of the girl from the river. "Yeah...she sure does."


	4. Chapter 4: Everything's Gonna Be Okay

_Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos,and peeks the interest of two friends?_

 **A.N. It was brought to my attention in the reviews that in my excitement to upload chapter 3, I accidentally re-uploaded chapter 2 instead. Oops! Thank you for pointing this out to me and another thank you to everyone who is adding the story to their favourites and following it. Also, still looking for someone to Beta read for me to help me stay on track. Happy reading.**

 **On with the story...**

 **Chapter 4: Every thing's gonna be okay!**

She knew it was getting dark as she came round from her deep sleep. Even though she was still too weak to open her eyes, her other senses were functional. Including her pain receptors sadly.

 _'Oh gods! The pain! Why does it hurt so bloody much?'_ The ebony locked woman tried to mover her head to get more comfortable, she felt like she was rubbing it on hot coals. The throbbing in her head was unbearable. She hadn't realised that she had cried out as a large, warm hand took hers, as another was soothing her forehead. Fear and blind panic bubbled its way up her throat as she struggled to get away from the scolding touch to her skin. Whoever was with her in that moment tried to restrain her. She screamed.

"NOOOO! LEAVE ME ALONE! DON'T!" She felt them scoop her up into their arms and place her back to their broad chest. They began rocking with her, brushing her hair from her face so that she could see them properly. A young man, possibly her age, a pale face set with dark hair and grey-blue eyes staring into her own amber orbs with fear and concern, was it for her? Shushing her quietly as though she were a small child waking from a nightmare, he kept his voice low to not startle her and was reassuring her softly.

"Hey, hey there doll every thing's gonna be all right. You're safe now. You're gonna be okay." The young man was soothing her head, being mindful of the back of her head she noticed. _'He's American! Have I actually made it?'_ When her breathing had steadied and no longer felt like her heart was in her mouth, she realised that they weren't alone. There were six other men kneeling close by appearing to be ready for anything. Only one approached slowly so as not to spook her anymore than what she had been. _'This must be the leader.'_ Everything about the man's aura screamed authority, but there was gentleness and compassion there too. Instantly calming at his presence, she felt herself finally relaxing in the other's arms.

"Wh - Where am I? Who are you?" She wished she sounded stronger as she spoke to the men she found herself with. It appeared all her strength and courage was all used up during her escape attempt and the struggle through the rapids. The one holding her looked to the blonde man in dark blue armour, they nodded to each other and looked back at her.

"My name is Captain Steve Rogers, this is Sergeant James 'Bucky' Barnes of the US 107th Infantry. We found you drifting on the river and brought you ashore. We thought you were dead at first." The young woman looked down at her hands to see that they were shaking, she hadn't realised just how close she was to dying. "You've been at our camp for a few hours, we've tended to your wounds but can't do much else for you until we get to HQ. Right now though, we're going to try to keep you warm and safe until our ride gets here." He held her hands in both of his huge calloused hands and rubbed them slowly to help with the shaking. A soft warm smile formed on his chiselled face, not a single imperfection to be found. His sea-blue eyes seemed to sparkle in the light of the fire that she only just realised was behind him. The glow from the fire was inviting, the captain seemed to notice her looking longingly at the blaze, then look to her in concern as she began to shiver again in Bucky's hold. "Are you cold?" Steve asked her as he looked to the others to assure them that everything was fine.

"Yes, just a little bit." She began to shake more violently as a gust of wind blew through her tattered and damp clothes. Bucky began to rub her arms vigorously to try to help circulate some warmth into her body and began to rise to his feet, bringing her up with him in his muscular arms. He kept a hand on the small of her back and supported her balance with the other at the crook of her arm and looked down to her with uncertainty.

"Do you think you can walk to the fire? Do you need any help?"

"If it's all right with you two, I'd like to try and walk. It isn't that far." The patient took a few uneasy steps toward to the camp fire, only to gasp in pain from her feet and pressure on her leg. The pain was almost dizzying and she keeled over. Steve caught her in his arms and gently picked her up and carried her the rest of the way bridal style. At their arrival to the rest of the team, Steve let her down carefully as though she were made of glass and wrapped his uniform jacket over her shoulders.

"This is my team, Tim Dugan, Montgomery Falsworth, Jim Morita, Jacques Denier and Gabe Jones." Steve introduced them pointing each man out as they exchanged hellos or waved. "It was Denier and Jones who treated you ma'am." She studied each of her saviours with a small nervous smile. She really couldn't believe how fortunate she was to have been found by the allies, the mere thought of it having been the Nazis, or worse, sent a shiver down her spine.

"I can't honestly thank you...any of you enough for saving my life." The men smiled warmly at their guest, although they never expect it, sometimes it was nice to hear someone thanking them. Dugan patted her softly on her good leg, smiling broadly with a cigar hanging from his mouth.

"Our pleasure little lady, but I gotta say...you know all our names, what do we call you by?" _'Oops!'_ She hadn't realised after the better half of an hour awake with these men that she failed to give them her name, lower her face flushed with embarrassment she returned etiquette.

"Annette, I'm Annette Augusta Birkinshaw." She raised her head and held out her hand to Dugan smiling politely. "It's very nice to meet you."

"Annette...I like it, it suits you. I'm gonna call you Netty!" The others laughed at Dugan's habit of giving people shortened names. Annette simple smiled and giggled at him.

The evening drew on and when her shaking finely subsided, the fire was put out and they made their way to a small woodland near a road and set about making themselves comfortable for the night. Wrapping her in a blanket and with Steve's jacket for a makeshift pillow. The team of men huddled around her blocking Annette from the night chill with a sentry rota. Despite everything that she had been through and that she was cold, sore and in the middle of nowhere in a war-zone. Annette found herself thinking with a smile that this was probably the safest she had ever felt in a very very long time. With that, she gave out a soft yawn and snuggled up into the back of the first warm body she made contact with, and drifted off to sleep.

 _Okay! I really am struggling here guys. Would really like to here your thoughts on what should be in the next chapter regarding our main story characters. I'll be mentioning her point of origin and how she came to be, but should it be in snippets or as a flashback chapter? Let me know and tell me what you think. Please review kindly._


	5. Chapter 5: Just A Memory

Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture, and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos, and peeks the interest of two friends?

Rated M for eventual mutual threesome involvement. Don't like, don't read it. Only positive and constructive criticism will be acknowledged. Also looking for Beta Readers.

I wish I did own the rights to Captain America (drools), but I don't sadly. However, I do own Annette.

On with the story.

 **Author's Note: Would like to thank every one for the kind reviews so far, still would like to hear your ideas as to what you would like to see happening in the story. Don't be afraid to leave a mention in a review or PM me. Also, still looking for Beta readers. This chapter is definitely one of my longest ones, this is because I wanted to go in depth about the Nazi occupation of the Channel Islands during this time, especially in Guernsey. All dates, events, and places are real and can easily be found online on Wikipedia. Happy Reading.**

 **Chapter 4: Just a memory**

 **June 1940 – St. Pierre du Bois, Guernsey**

Annette walked into the kitchenette of her family home with the week's grocery shopping in her basket. The thatch cottage that she and her father, Winfried, lived in was small, but it had all the comforts they could ever need. As she stored away her goods, she could hear her elder listening to the wireless in the living room. He seemed to be doing an awful lot of that lately. With a sigh, she filled the kettle and lit the stove ready to make some tea.

"Netty! Come quickly child!" She stopped what she was doing and walked to her father with haste. He sat in his tweed armchair, ashen faced. Annette knew that this wasn't good news.

"What is it Pappa?" Winfried, swiveled in his chair as he turned to look at his only child. Worry, fear and dread etched into his creased brow. She placed herself on the floor by her father's feet and took his hands, rubbing them in a calming manner with a small smile.

"My dear, the British have fallen in Saumur. The French President has announced full surrender of France, the Nazi occupation has begun. The British government has declared that the Channel Islands are to be demilitarized with all military and government personnel evacuated. It's not looking good for us islanders I'm afraid Blutenblatt." Netty knew her father was telling the truth, in all her eighteen years, she knew for him to never lie to her. The Battle for France was over, the occupation of their island home was imminent. What would her mama have done with the news? What would she have done? The shrill of the kettle reminded her of the answer...make a cup of tea.

Netty and Winfried entered the kitchenette in silence, she made the pot of tea without so much as a word. 'What could there be possibly left to say anyway?' She thought miserably. Placing her father's tea cup on the table, she took her place sitting next to him nursing her cup. "What happens now Pappa? Where do we go from here?" He was in deep thought as he drank his tea, possibly thinking of the next step for Guernsey. They were miles from St. Peter's Port, even if they were to leave now the Bailiff would probably have no idea what to do until they heard from the other Island Bailiffs about what the government want them to do. With a heavy sigh and placing his tea cup and saucer by the basin, he looked to his daughter with a calming smile.

"Well, my little Netty. There is no sense in falling into hysteria." Winfried began to fill his pipe with his tobacco. He then sat back down at the table nibbling on the end of his pipe winking at his daughter. "We shall sleep on it until the morning. Then we shall go into St. Peter's on the morning bus. The big towns and harbor towns always get the news before us country folk. If there is any news, good or bad, it'll get to them first."

She could only nod her head in agreement. 'Trust my pappa to know what to do.' Giving her father a small peck on the cheek, she bid him good night and went to her room. The near future was going to be very interesting indeed.

They arrived in the harbor town of St. Peter's Port early the next afternoon. It seemed as though the whole island was trying to leave for the mainland. The islanders were in a complete panic, children were crying as their tearful mothers waved them off on the boats. The Bailiff and his staff sitting at makeshift tables on the quayside taking note of the passengers and helping fill out paperwork for the refugees. Winfried and his daughter made their way over to them to discuss the evacuation process. Pierre, the Bailiff of Guernsey, made eye contact with them and brought them to one side to speak in private. He couldn't look his friend of twenty years in the eye.

"I am so sorry Winfried, but the fleet won't let you board for the mainland."

"What?" Netty couldn't believe it. The British government was denying her father safe passage. "Why Pierre? He has been on English soil since the end of the last war, my mother, his wife was English. Good gods! He even took my mother's last name just to be with her." The elderly man sighed in both frustration and grief for his friends.

"I don't like this anymore than you do ma chere, but the British have decreed that anyone of German origin is not permitted to travel to the mainland for fear of sabotage and espionage. Anyone found trying to enter are ordered to be detained by the MPs." Her body began to betray her as a single tear graced her cheek. The Bailiff brought her into an embrace as a means to comfort her.

"Then I shall stay with him, and see the occupation through."

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" The young brunette jumped at her father's outburst. Winfried had gone pale and was visibly shaking with unkept rage at the thought of his only child being trapped on the island. "Mein kind, I'm old and have lived my life, I've seen you grow from the tiny babe your mother blessed me with into the most beautiful young woman that you are now. This war is coming, and it is something I would never wish for you to witness. Please Netty, get on the ship."

The stubborn young woman shook her head smiling at her father, the gods and all their wrath and fury couldn't stop her from being with her only family left that mattered to her. She was going to stick with it, till the allies came, or till the war was at an end.

"No Pappa, we are family, and we are a team that has always stuck together. I'm not going anywhere without you whether you like it or not." The elderly man just sighed deeply looking to the sky with an exasperated expression. When he looked down to her again, he didn't see his daughter anymore, he saw his beloved Francesca incarnate. With a hand on her cheek, eyes sparkling, he smiled.

"You have your mother's spirit, perhaps too much of it!"

"And I have your stubbornness apparently." Netty shot back grinning at Winfried as they bid their farewells to Pierre, walking into the main square.

"The gods must be testing me." The poor man grumbled in defeat. Netty just laughed. She was no fool though, she knew hardships were on their way. Nothing prepared her for the upcoming months.

 **September 1940**

"Pappa? Why do you have a summons from the Commandant?"

It had been three months into the Nazi occupation, so far peacefully without incident. Then came the enforcement of the Third Reich, Jews who had registered willingly began to be placed under house arrest, forced to close their businesses and treated with utter contempt by the occupying soldiers. Some protested, they were deported to the detention camps on the continent. Then the letters and newspaper propaganda started, soon after, all islanders were ordered to surrender their radios and were forbidden to listen to the BBC. The few people she knew in St. Pierre du Bois who received summons from the Commandant, never came back.

"It is nothing mein Blutenblatt. It is probably a problem with our ration book paperwork, after all it has not arrived yet." She left it at that begrudgingly. She knew that their ration booked hadn't arrived yet, and that that may well be why they were being asked to be seen. Worry still plagued her thoughts though and her instincts told her something wasn't right.

That following morning they rode in silence on the bus to 's Port. It seemed as though all the joy and cheer of everyone on the vehicle was sucked out and replaced with tension and uncertainty. It made for an uncomfortable trip. Upon arriving, they approached a German officer enquiring where to find the Commandant and were promptly guided to town hall. There, they sat and they waited to be seen. Netty hadn't realized that she had been shaking until she felt her father's leathery hand take hers and hold her gently. "Everything will be fine my darling." She simply nodded her head, fearing that if she spoke she would be ill. Taking a few deep breaths, she looked to her father and smiled.

"Zee Commandant vill see you now." Came the harsh voice of a man in a suit. Father and daughter walked hand in hand into the room and the officer shut the door behind them with an ominous thud.

 **Annette's POV**

Netty woke with a gasp and covered in a slight sheen of perspiration. Shaken and disorientated from her dream as she looked around her new surroundings. She'd almost forgotten that she was finally safe with the group of men who had found her in the river earlier that day. Still feeling sore from her torturous day, she tried to lower herself back down quietly so as not to disturb her guardians who were sleeping around her like a barrier. A hushed voice called out to her as she hissed in pain.

"Netty?" The petite girl winced, hopes of not waking any of them dashed as she turned and looked into the concerned and tired face of Bucky. He sat up a bit to look at her properly. "You okay Doll?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake anyone." Netty sighed frustratedly looking at her hands. " I can't even lie back down without hurting myself." Tears started to prick at her eyes as she fought not to let them fall. Bucky leaned over and reached a hand out to her to help her settle into his front again.

"Hey, none of that now." He wiped her face of her sweat and tears and began soothing her by rubbing her back gently mindful of her injuries. "Sometimes it's alright to cry, especially after what you've been through today. I won't tell on you." He gave her a smirk and a wink which made her smile slightly as her eyes became heavy again. Letting out a small yawn, she began to snuggle into the sergeant's chest.

"Did you have a nightmare?" He asked her softly as she slowly started to drift off. She shook her head slightly.

"Just a memory." Then she was asleep again.

 _ _Translations__ _-_ _Blutenblatt - Flower petal – German_

 _Mein kind – My child – German_

 _Ma Chere – My dear - French_


	6. Chapter 6: My Name is Agent Carter

__Summary: Annette escaped the camp, but where to go. Hurt, tired and being followed by the Hydra forces that imprisoned her, she's forced to make a literal leap of faith in the rapids to evade further imprisonment, torture, and experimentation. What happens when she is pulled from the banks of the latest SSR camp and nursed back to health by none other than The Howling Commandos and peeks the interest of two friends?__

 _ _Rated M for eventual mutual threesome involvement. Don't like, don't read it. Only positive and constructive criticism will be acknowledged. Also looking for Beta Readers.__

 _ _I wish I did own the rights to Captain America (drools), but I don't sadly. However, I do own Annette.__

 _ _On with the story.__

 _ _'thoughts'__

 _ _ **Author's Notes:**__

 _ _ **Sorry for the late update. Homeschooling a disabled child and fighting a tribunal for Special Needs School absolutely sucks, but is totally worth the effort. Thank you for your patience. It's another long one I'm afraid. Thank you again for all your lovely reviews and pointers so please keep doing so. Happy reading.**__

 _ **Chapter 6: My Name is Agent Carter**_

 _ _ **Steve POV**__

Steve had always been a light sleeper. Even when he was five foot nothing, weighed lighter than air and had every ailment going. So it was no surprise to him when he woke to what he thought were the sounds of a struggle. Sitting up straighter against a tree he propped himself on before sleeping, he observed Netty. The young woman that he and Bucky found in the river struggling with an invisible force. 'A nightmare.' He couldn't even imagine the horrors she must have seen, hell he wasn't even sure if he wanted to. But Steve knew that if they were going to help her get home and safe, they would eventually have to question her about her experience.'That's even if she makes through the night.' He almost jumped up from his position when he saw her shoot up with a gasp and shaking, his best friend Bucky, however, was already on the case and managed to soothe her back against him and she drifted back to sleep. When Bucky was sure that she was asleep, he looked over to Steve with a tired smile and a nod of his head, the captain returned the gesture and he too went back to sleep.

 _ **Falsworth POV**_

When Falsworth woke in the early hours to relieve Dugan of his watch, he noticed the little woman asleep slightly shivering from the remnants of her fever huddled in a blanket against Barnes' chest. The soldier, also asleep with his arms tightly around her arms as though sheltering her from the world was enough to bring a small smile to the Brit's face. If he'd had a family, he'd like to think that he would be just as protective. He would make it his mission to treat this girl as such, his family, providing she had no family of course. That made him frown as he got ready to leave. 'Does she even have a family? Where are they? How the bloody hell did she end up in this mess of a war?' Perhaps his connections in the MOD could try to track her family for him, if not at least give him some information regarding her. For now, though, it was his turn to take watch, and pray that she made it till morning.

 _ **Dugan POV**_

Dum-Dum Dugan made his way to the group from the sentry that they were all taking turns to patrol when he could hear whimpering. Knowing that they could still be in danger after the discovery of an injured civilian, he hoisted his rifle and trod softly towards the sound in order to sneak up on them. When he rounded a tree, he lowered his weapon at the sight of a trembling mess of a girl in the arms of Bucky who had been trying to keep her warm. The wind had changed direction and was now blowing directly on her front which was exposed to the elements. Not having the heart to wake the poor kid, 'Yes she's practically a baby compared to me.' He put his gun against the tree and lay down with his back to her in a bid to give her some privacy and respect. Within the next few minutes, he felt the shaking stop and he went to sleep with the promise that he was going to be the best big brother she could ever ask for. If she survived that is. So after a silent yawn escaped him, he settled down for some needed shut eye and whispered. "Sweet dreams Kid."

 _ **Jones POV**_

To wake up the next morning to find that their new charge had survived the night was a huge relief to the men of the 107th. To find that her fever and most of her injuries except for the young woman's leg wound were almost healed, was borderline miraculous. Gabe put it down to the river keeping her wounds clean for the most part, the speed for which she received medical treatment that reduced the risk of infection, and his sergeant and Dugan for giving her body heat in the night to survive the cold. Yet he was still concerned about the remaining wound in her thigh. The bullet needed to be removed and quickly. The area surrounding the point of penetration was inflamed, the early signs of a serious infection, he just didn't have the confidence or the medical expertise to perform the procedure. That and he didn't know where in her leg the bullet settled, one wrong move on his part and she could bleed out from accidentally hitting an artery. This required an X-ray and general anesthetic, all things he couldn't provide, all he could do was slow the risk of infection and hope they could get her to their field hospital in time. The extraction team couldn't have arrived a moment too soon.

 _ **Normal POV**_

The rumbling of trucks stirred Netty from her fitful sleep, slowly opening her eyes she could see the men from the night before amongst fresher faces as they gathered around the bonnet of a vehicle with Captain Rogers. He was giving instructions whilst pointing to what she assumed was a map. The sergeant who had lain with her in the night to keep her warm standing at his side rifle at the ready with a handful of soldiers. It looked as though they were getting ready to move out again. Raising herself to a higher vantage point, she was stopped half way by a man in a white coat who she hadn't realized had been leaning over her startling a yelp from her throat.

"Easy there miss. I'm a Dr. Andrews stationed with the 107th and the SSR." He ushered so as not to startle her further. "I'm pleased to say that with the care from the field medic that your fever has broken," Netty observed him closely as he reached into his bag for a needle. She panicked.

"What is that? What are you going to do to me? Please don't!" She began to thrash trying to break free from the stretcher as he tried to calm her unsuccessfully. The more he tried, the harder she fought and became more hysterical. "NO! DON'T HURT ME ANYMORE! NO!" From out of nowhere, a woman arrived at her side who had forced her to look into her eyes.

"Miss. Birkinshaw? My name is Agent Carter. You are not in any danger. The wound in your leg has become infected and the bullet must be removed." Netty though still shaking in fright, appeared to have finally calmed enough and easily distracted in order for the good doctor to inject her with the needle. The agent continued speaking calmly but firmly as the soldiers looked on in confusion and pity.

"Dr. Andrews has just injected you with an anesthetic so that he can remove the bullet safely and without causing you any further pain. I can assure you that when you wake, you will be safe." Netty eyes were stinging with the effort to stay awake with tears streaking across her face.

"You promise I won't wake in that place again?" She slurred as the drug took effect. The brunette soothed her forehead nodding her head in confirmation.

"You have my word." Netty shuddered in relief and her eyes drifted closed. She knew no more after that.

With their injured ward safely in the ambulance and driving away with Carter and the doctor, the troop began their trek back to the factory along with their reinforcements. To make sure that they didn't leave anything of scientific value behind, they had insisted on Howard Stark's personal involvement along with his small crew of scientists and doctors. As much as they wanted to retrace the young woman's steps, they had to abandon this in favor of investigating the factory further and in depth. Upon arriving they divided into groups, each taking one of Stark's crew with them to make sure nothing was left behind with Howard going along with the Howling Commandos.

"So I've been hearing whispers that the kid you found jumped off a cliff." The dark haired millionaire started with as he rummaged through undamaged filing boxes to break the eerie quiet. He never really could stand silence, especially when he was in a room that reminded him of something from a Frankenstein movie. "Is that true?" He asked Steve as he began tucking any relevant into an SSR box. Steve turned to Bucky and he in turn answered. "I wouldn't go as far to say it was a cliff, but yeah was definitely a long drop to the water below." Howard couldn't help the whistle that left his lips as he made his way to a wall full of folders and began looking through them. "Damn that girl's got moxie, always liked a girl with moxie!" Steve knowing full well by now what the scientist was like with women tried to stir him into another line of conversation. "From what we've seen and heard from her so far, I get the feeling that she felt that she had no other option." A muttered "I suppose so" from Stark thankfully stopped that discussion in its tracks. They had work to do.

 _ **Howard's POV**_

Having gathered everything from the lab/office that he deemed was crucial to the SSR and boxing it ready to be loaded into the trucks outside. He was ready to leave. 'Cause seriously this place is giving me the creeps.' It was as he was leaving the room, he'd noticed a door nobody had been yet and walked over to it. "Say! Has anyone been in this room yet?" When everyone confirmed to the negative, he tried the door to find it was locked. "Allow me." Was the loud response from Dugan as he swiftly kicked down the door. Groping his way to a light switch he flicked it over only to feel the contents of his stomach trying to come up his throat. All around him were shelves full of what he hoped were not human organs, stores of vials of what looked like blood and other colorful liquids. In the center of the room was an operating table that looked to have dried blood on and around it. He didn't wait to be told and began filming the contents of the room whilst another took photos. Everything needed to be documented, cataloged and removed methodically. "My God!" He whispered hoarsely as he shakily left the factory and leaned on a wall to compose himself. "I knew they were twisted but this?" He gave a shaky sigh as he stood beside the captain and his sergeant. When they were riding in the truck and a safe distance away from the burning inferno of what had been the factory, he muttered, "I've never seen anything like this."

 _ **Steve and Bucky's POV**_

They didn't expect this. Ever since Assano, they thought they knew what Hydra and possibly the Nazi's were capable of. They hadn't been prepared when they took their first glances around the room, yet continued to gaze horrified by what they were sure could never be unseen again. No one who entered the room of unspeakable evil left unaffected by the terrors they witnessed. Some were being sick, others crying and some quiet with green/gray faces refusing to speak to anyone on the truck back to base. They let out sighs and breathing deeply to compose themselves. They personally made sure that that building was razed to the ground.

Everyone was silent on the way back until they heard Howard Stark mutter shakily to himself. "I've never seen anything like this."

"I have!" They both answered in tandem.

When they finally pulled up at their base of operations, they jumped out and immediately made their way to medical where they knew they'd find a certain Miss Annette Birkinshaw.

It was time to get some answers.


End file.
